March 26, 2010 -
The Allied Pilots Association (APA), certified collective bargaining
agent for the 11,500 pilots of American Airlines voiced its support for
H.R.4788, the “Aviation Jobs Outsourcing Prevention Act.”

Introduced earlier
this month by U.S. Rep. Timothy Bishop (D-NY), the bill would establish
job protections for U.S. workers by placing limits on
alliances between two or more airlines, or between a domestic carrier
and a foreign carrier.

“We have
repeatedly expressed our concerns about cross-border joint business
agreements between airlines and the outsourcing threat they pose to yet
more middleclass workers,” said APA President Captain Lloyd Hill.

“These arrangements likewise pose a threat to the ongoing economic
recovery and even to our national security.” Along with its concerns
about competitiveness and job security, APA has also been emphasizing
the importance of ensuring that U.S. carriers
can be deployed on short notice for Civil Reserve Air Fleet duty. That
readiness could be compromised by cross border airline alliances or a
relaxation of foreign ownership restrictions.

“Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that airline managements have any
intention of ceasing their efforts to form such arrangements anytime
soon,” Hill said. “It is therefore imperative that lawmakers intervene
by providing our industry’s workers with appropriate job protections, as
Rep. Bishop has done with this bill.

“Far too many hard-working men and women in a variety of our country’s
industries have already lost their livelihoods when their jobs were
outsourced overseas. This legislation represents an opportunity to help
stem that outsourcing tide,” he said. “And let’s be clear—our nation’s
workers aren’t the only ones who have paid a heavy price when their jobs
were outsourced. To sustain the ongoing economic recovery, we must
preserve the jobs we now have, in addition to creating new ones.”

The bill’s
language stipulates that the U.S. Department of Transportation could
“end approval of any agreement, request or modification that provides
for or permits the sharing or pooling of revenue or profits between
participating carriers.”

Hill noted that
these limitations are designed to preserve jobs for
U.S.
workers while also permitting carriers to maintain existing code-share
agreements. Co-sponsored by Reps. Mike Michaud (D-ME) and Thaddeus
McCotter (R-MI), the legislation is now before the House Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure.

Founded in 1963, the Allied Pilots Association—the largest independent
pilot union in the U.S.—is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.
APA represents the 11,500pilots of American Airlines, including 1,887
pilots on furlough. The furloughs began shortly after the September 11,
2001 attacks. Also, several hundred American Airlines pilots are on
full-time military leave of absence serving in the armed forces.